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Interfollicular Fibrosis in the Thyroid of the Harbour Porpoise: An Endocrine Disruption?

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Abstract

Previous studies have described high levels of polychlorobiphenyls (PCB), polybrominated diphenylether (PBDE), toxaphene, p,p′-dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT), and p,p′-dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene (DDE) in the blubber of the harbour porpoise from the North Sea raising the question of a potential endocrine disruption in this species. In the present study, the thyroids of 57 harbour porpoises from the German and Danish (North and Baltic Seas), Norwegian, and Icelandic coasts have been collected for histological and immunohistological investigations. The number of follicles and the relative distribution of follicles, connective, and solid tissues (%) were quantified in the thyroid of each individual. Then, the potential relationship between the thyroid morphometry data and previously described organic compounds (namely, PCB, PBDE, toxaphene, DDT, and DDE) was investigated using factor analysis and multiple regressions. Thyroid morphology differed strongly between sampling sites. Porpoises from the German (North and Baltic Seas) and Norwegian coasts displayed a high percentage of connective tissues between 30 and 38% revealing severe interfollicular fibrosis and a high number of large follicles (diameter >200 μm). A correlation-based principal component analysis (PCA) revealed two principal components explaining 85.9% of the total variance. The variables PCB, PBDE, DDT, and DDE compounds loaded highest on PC1 whereas toxaphene compound loaded most on PC2. Our results pointed out a relationship between PC1 (PCBs, PBDE, DDE, and DDT compounds) and interfollicular fibrosis in the harbour porpoise thyroids. Such an association is not alone sufficient for a cause–effect relationship but supports the hypothesis of a contaminant-induced thyroid fibrosis in harbour porpoises raising the question of the long-term viability in highly polluted areas.

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Acknowledgments

This work was funded by the Environmental Research Plan of the German Ministry of Environment (Federal Agency of Environment; F+E-Vorhaben 29965 221/0). Thanks to R. Mundry for statistical analyses. Krishna Das received grants from the Marie-Curie Fellowship (EVK3-CT-2002-50009) and from FNRS (Fonds National pour la Recherche Scientifique). This paper is a MARE publication no. 074.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Research- and Technology Centre Westcoast, Christian-Albrechts-University Kiel, Büsum, Germany

    Krishna Das, Arndt Vossen & Ursula Siebert

  2. Leslie Hill Molecular Systematics Laboratory, Kirstenbosch Research Centre, South African National Biodiversity Institute, Private Bag X7, Claremont, 7735, South Africa

    Kristal Tolley

  3. Marine Research Institute, Reykjavík, Iceland

    Gisli Víkingsson

  4. Baltic Sea Research Institute Warnemuende, Warnemuende, Germany

    Kristina Thron

  5. School of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, Hannover, Germany

    Gundi Müller & Wolfgang Baumgärtner

  6. Mare Center, Laboratory for Oceanology B6c, Liège University, Liège, Belgium

    Krishna Das

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  1. Krishna Das
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Correspondence to Krishna Das.

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Das, K., Vossen, A., Tolley, K. et al. Interfollicular Fibrosis in the Thyroid of the Harbour Porpoise: An Endocrine Disruption?. Arch Environ Contam Toxicol 51, 720–729 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00244-005-0098-4

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